Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services Secretary would likely dismantle the 13 agencies HHS oversees and rebuild them with like-minded people and stop the National Institutes of Health from studying infectious diseases and instead study chronic diseases, reports NBC News.
Kennedy, who is planning to end his independent presidential campaign this week and reportedly endorse former President Donald Trump, has made those statements in the past about the HHS, an agency he is reportedly gunning to lead.
Trump has previously suggested Kennedy would do an "incredible job" in the role and later told CNN he would "probably appoint" Kennedy Jr. to some role in his administration if he wins.
"I didn't know he was thinking about getting out, but if he is thinking about getting out, certainly I'd be open to it," Trump said.
Republican vice-presidential nominee J.D. Vance, though, on Wednesday emphasized there was no deal offering a role for Kennedy in a future administration to secure his backing.
"I know the president's been working hard for that, but it's completely separate from whether RFK gets a cabinet position," Vance told NBC News about the prospect of an endorsement.
Kennedy last year told NBC News the HHS agencies had become "sock puppets" for the industries they regulate and that the priority during a pandemic "should be finding treatments that work and building people's immune systems.
Vaccines, he added, "have probably caused more deaths than they've averted."
DNC communications adviser Lis Smith earlier this week condemned comments made by Kennedy's running mate, Nicole Shanahan, about dropping out to support Trump.
"In one interview alone, she floated RFK Jr. for HHS Secretary in a Trump administration, discussed her interest in running for governor of California in 2026, admitted that the Kennedy-Shanahan campaign has no path to victory, and raised the possibility of joining forces with Trump to defeat Vice President Harris," Smith said. "From the beginning of this race, we've said that RFK Jr. is nothing more than a spoiler for Donald Trump, and we're glad that his running mate is finally admitting it."
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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